Government examining options after NY based diplomat hits wife

The Government of St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) was on Saturday gathering statements and examining options, following reports that a diplomat stationed in New York had allegedly hit his wife in the face.

The New York Daily News and the New York Post reported on Friday that Sehon Marshall, 43, counselor to the Permanent Mission of SVG to the United Nations allegedly boxed his wife Xandra, 36, after an argument broke out at their home in the Canarsie area of Brooklyn at 1:15 am Friday.

According to the New York Daily News, the police officers who responded to the call saw Xandra’s lip split open and her finger swollen when they arrived at the house.

The police however did not arrest Sehon because he has diplomatic immunity, which protects him from prosecution.

Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves told SEARCHLIGHT on Saturday that the Government is aware of the reports and is “gathering all the relevant statements.”

“The Government will always act appropriately,” he said, in a telephone interview, adding that the Government of SVG “holds a strong position against domestic violence as is reflected in its legislative efforts.”

Sehon Marshall was appointed Deputy Consul General at the SVG Consulate in New York in October 2014; he was transferred to the UN Mission in August 2016.

Xandra Marshall is herself a diplomat, having been appointed to her husband’s former post of Deputy Consul General at the New York Consulate only a few weeks ago.